Battier, Spoelstra skeptical of NBA’s anti-flopping initiative

The NBA commissioner vowed during the 2012 playoffs that he would take measures to punish practitioners, and a league spokesman confirmed Friday that plans are being finalized to review possible infractions after games, in order to assess fines.

The Heat has been accused — most recently and loudly by Pacers coach Frank Vogel — of perfecting the art form of the defensive flop, so coach Erik Spoelstra and swingman Shane Battier were asked for their opinions on the league’s current course of action.

Spoelstra, not surprisingly, struck back against that accusation.

“I would make the argument that anybody that thinks that flopping comes from help-side charges, they’re getting the concept of the flop incorrectly,” Spoelstra said. “It’s my opinion what makes the game look bad, is when you’re trying to trick the referee on the ball. And you’re flopping, you’re jerking your head, on-the-ball or offensively when you’re doing that. When you’re making a help-side rotation and you’re putting your body in there, there’s either contact or there’s not. And if you’re getting run over, you’re getting over. There’s not as much flopping in those areas.”

Spoelstra maintained that the Heat coaching staff “hammers our guys” not to jerk their heads, or bail out, while guarding on-the-ball, because it’s simply not good defense.

“But as far as help side, that’s a major part of our defense,” Spoelstra said.

Battier said he hoped the league pays as much mind to the flopping that offensive players do, as that defensive players supposedly do.

“Flopping is a problem,” Battier said, smiling. “Flopping is the silent killer.”

Battier said his fear is that — with enough calls to review already — “they’re going to find some fresh Harvard business school intern in the league office to be the flop reviewer, the flop czar, fresh out of HBS, and his or her highest level of basketball will probably be intramural. And they are making some potentially lucrative financial decisions.”